How bad will it be to move ourselves rather than use a removal firm

[PippaFawcett]

We are moving from a three bed semi to a slightly larger three bed detached.

Removals quotes are coming in at £1000+ with one saying our stuff won't be insured unless we use their packing services which is more £££.

We don't have an excessive amount of stuff but have all the usual beds/two wardrobes/table/sofa/white goods etc and we are only moving 40 mins away so could do a couple of trips if necessary. But it would only be me and DH really as it will be a weekday and we don't feel we can ask any of our friends to take time off work to help.

The DC can go to childcare so at least they will be out of the way. We thought we could hire the car the night before and load it up at night - with help - so it is ready to drive the next morning.

Would we be mad to do this? Or is the saving worth it? We are going to be renovating the new house so every penny counts.

[Pooka]

Sounds like madness to me! Are you in a chain - in which case would be a worse idea because things should go along the lines of everything out/everything in rather than multiple trips being made to empty the house first.

[MyLlamasGoneBananas]

Will you be moving in the same day the people in your new house move out?

Can you move out gradually over a few days?

You may be surprised how much stuff you actually have when you start boxing up things in cupboards and drawers.

Personally packing and removals are essential to me and worth every penny. We have helped move friends a few times with a hire van and repeat trips and it's not something I'd do unless we became minimalists.

[katemiddletonsnudeheels]

My Dad and I did this. We were absolutely bloody SHATTERED and one of us me scraped the wall getting a wardrobe up but we did manage it!

[specialsubject]

did it once, many years ago, moving 2 miles, with less stuff than you.

that day we had a Luton van with a tail lift. Still took 3 trips - one beautifully loaded, one less so and the third just thrown in, and most of the day, AND we had parents to help (we were all much younger!)

for the move a couple of years back (over a long distance) we packed ourselves and then used removers. Correct, stuff you pack yourself isn't insured but if you do it properly it does all survive. It took two weeks practically full time and a lot of extra time gathering packing material on freecycle and from supermarkets.

and we thought we didn't have much stuff.... do you get my drift?

at the very least, use removers. Those quotes do seem high, but inflation is not really under 1% I suppose.

[ChicRock]

You'd be mad to do it yourselves, especially if you're planning multiple trips, in a car?

Expect to have some very pissed off purchasers waiting with their removal lorry on what is now their driveway for you to load up and get out of their house.

[gamerwidow]

You can do it but it is utterly exhausting and I wouldn't if there was anyway to avoid it.

[mangocoveredlamb]

We helped friend so it once, from a tiny two bed house, two loads in a Luton. It was so stressful and exhausting, and I swore we would always use removal men for our moves. i suspect we got away with two loads as the new house was vacant possession and the new owner of the old house wasn't moving in that day.

[PippaFawcett]

Yes we are in a chain so good point about everything out in one go. We are just starting to declutter now but I fully accept that we probably have more stuff than I realise.

But we have no garage and only bikes and the lawnmower in the shed so I reckon it is doable but last time we moved we had two other helpers.

[LizzieMacQueen]

If you were closer than 40 minutes away it is possible but I think that is too far if you end up with 2+ journeys to make. Even with a transit van you'll struggle to get everything in two loads.

If it was me, I'd try to reduce the cost by getting the removal firm to move the large items of furniture only and you and your DH can hire a van mid week and move all the contents yourself.

Any firm would surely have insurance cover - I have never heard the excuse that if they didn't pack they can't insure.

[trilbydoll]

You could use a man and van? Cheaper than removers because I assume they're not insured to the same level but they'll move heavy stuff in about 1/3 of the time it would take you.

The last two times we've moved (both pre dc) we got man and van to do all the furniture and as many boxes as they could fit in and we did the rest.

[MiniLop]

Like special we did it ourselves with a Luton van with a tail lift which we hired. Did it all in one go in the van and any last minute stuff in the car.
We hired the van the day before, packed it all in and left it there overnight (we were in a 2 bed flat so the van was parked in a secure private car park. Next day once we got 'the call' we packed the last minute stuff in the van & car, and headed to the new place less than a mile away.
If you are thinking of doing it yourselves, definitely hire a van that is big enough to get everything in in one trip. Especially as it's a 40 minute journey and you'll have to unload at the other end - so probably 2 hours per car load?

[PippaFawcett]

Just to clarify, we would hire and van. My friend has offered to let us store a few bits in her garage near to the new house that we could take a few things over the week before - I was thinking things like the televisions/anything a bit more fragile that I could just drive over.

[nancy75]

We have moved both with and without movers, I would never do it without again. Removal people know exactly how to get a sofa out of a small doorway, or get a massive chest of drawers up the stairs, they know how to pack the Lorry to get the most stuff in and there are enough of them to get it done out & in all in a day.
in my experience you always think you don't have that much stuff until you move!

[Elisheva]

Last time we moved we hired a man and a van. Actually it was two men and a van and it cost £50 per hour. But we had a week to move in so plenty of time to clean, pack up last bits etc. I don't think we could have done it in a day, the van just isn't big enough to do it in less than four trips.

[PippaFawcett]

Mini - that's what I thought we could do. Hire a large van the night before and get friends - who have offered to help and we have helped with various favours over the years - to come over and help us load it up and then the next day we would be nearly good to go.

The issue will be the other side when it is just me and DH. Although the downstairs of the house could probably take most of our belongings and we could move it upstairs later on.

[ipswichwitch]

Ive moved several times, with a houseful of stuff, and never used removers, because we simply don't have the money for that.

The key is organisation. Everything in labelled boxes (contents and room). We don't bother packing contents of drawers, just take each drawer out of the chest, stack them in the van and reassemble at the other end. With our last move, we just put essentials straight in the house, and other stuff in the garage which made unloading the van much quicker, and gradually brought it into the house over the next few days/weeks.

Don't underestimate how long it will take to pack. With the last few moves, I've started packing non-essentials as soon as I put the house on the market! We've also put a few boxes in a relatives spare room, which could be done any time, and collected after the big move (they dropped them off for us next day). Clothes on hangers were just carried out to the car, and transported on the back seat.

It is possible op. It's a long and tiring day, but as long as you're organised it's doable. Keep a takeaway menu handy so you don't have to worry about cooking after it all!

[PotteringAlong]

Completely bonkers. We moved from a 2 up 2 down without movers (and no chain). It was the worst decision we ever made..:

[AlexandraEiffel]

We did it, with only a very small car. But we had days and days to move. Weeks, maybe even months I think. We did it gradually, it was only 2 mins away. We got two men and a van for an hour for the last big bits. We also bought a fair amount of new furniture which was delivered direct.

Don't underestimate how much stuff houses hold, and how little a car or even a van holds relative to that. I wouldn't like to try and do it in a day and in one go.

[SparkleInParis]

If you haven't too much stuff I agree a man and a van would work. I found a local ad for this the last time I moved and there were actually two men as I wasn't able to help lift stuff. It cost me a quarter of the price of the quotes from removal firms. These firms seem to have huge vans and a squad of helpers so I can see why it would be expensive.

[LIZS]

Could you look into short term storage so you could move non essentials out earlier and in at your convenience later, leaving you with just one van load on the day.

[PippaFawcett]

I did message a local man with a van but I didn't get a very coherent response.

[Drquin]

I've had proper removals firm (though packed myself); a man & van; and myself / family .... For three different moves.

Despite having plenty time for each, I seriously underestimated how long the packing into boxes would take, let alone the "walking out to car and back" with a box or bag.

If money is tight, then yes it's do-able moving yourself ..... Only advice is don't leave packing to the last minute (I did .... Underestimated it in general, and then had the death of family member thrown in which affected the availability of wider family to assist).

[PippaFawcett]

DrQuin, I would definitely start boxing stuff up v soon and we haven't exchanged yet so we have approx six weeks until we move.

[VegasIsBest]

You really need to think carefully about insurance here. What happens if you load a van the night before and then it gets stolen? Or if stuff in your friends'garage is stolen.